Blackburn Rovers Midfielder Tugay To Retire At End Of Season

Blackburn Rovers manager Sam Allardyce has confirmed that 38-year-old midfielder Tugay will retire at the end of the season.

Since joining the Lancashire outfit from Scottish giants Rangers for £1.3 million in 2001, Tugay has made 290 appearances in all competitions for Rovers, scoring 13 goals.

The former Galatasaray star, who found the back of the net 34 times in 236 matches for the Turkish giants, won 94 caps for Turkey from 1990-2007, scoring twice.

 ‘Big Sam’ has paid tribute to the tough-tackling midfielder, who has become a cult hero at Ewood Park as a result of his pinpoint passing and fine link-up play.

"Tugay’s had a fantastic career – not just here, but throughout his playing days," Allardyce told the club's official website.

"However, at 38 years of age and, with the ever-increasing demands, particularly physical, of the Premier League, things eventually catch up with you.

"You can’t go on forever and Tugay has had a magnificent time and a magnificent run – playing at the top for most of his career.

"It has drawn to a very good end, certainly if we stay in the Premier League, and he has made a big contribution to helping us.

"So I think that it’ll be one of those whereby we say farewell at the end of the season and thank him very much for all he has done for Blackburn Rovers."

In response to being asked whether it might be possible for Tugay to remain at Ewood Park in a coaching capacity, Allardyce remarked, "Not really, because he’s not qualified to coach and I only employ qualified people at my management structure.

"If he goes away and does his coaching badges later in his career then I’m sure he’ll always have an eye on coming back to Blackburn at some stage.

"But he doesn’t know which way he is going to go forward in coaching terms anyway, so he will decide what his career path is at the end of the season."

Ricky Brooks, Goal.com